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Carlo Ancelotti has been dealt a blow in Everton’s rumoured pursuit of Nikola Maksimovic, with AS Roma considered to be a ‘welcome destination’ for the SSC Napoli defender.

What’s the word?

According to Forza Roma, Maksimovic could emerge as the Giallorossi’s first purchase of the summer market with the Serbian expected to leave the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium.

Maksimovic’s agent, Fali Ramadani, has been in contact with Roma for some time over a potential transfer, with the centre-back’s Napoli contract due to expire at the end of June.

The Stadio Olimpico is considered to be a ‘welcome destination’ for Maksimovic and further talks between Roma CEO Tiago Pinto and Ramadani are expected to be held soon.

Maksimovic is chasing a €3m-a-season (£49k-p/w) contract at his next club, which Roma are expected to meet with bonuses, as the deal is likely to be his last with a significant salary.

The 29-year-old is also keen to be guaranteed a starring role to ensure he secures a place in Serbia’s squad for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. But his request may prove problematic for Roma, as the Giallorossi are assessing a potential change in manager.

Any hurdle in Roma’s efforts is likely to play into the hands of their Serie A rivals Inter Milan, as the £11m-rated enforcer is seen as one of the most highly-coveted free agents to-be with interest from at least two other European clubs.

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Everton and West Ham United have been cited as potential destinations by Nicola Shira, who notes that both Premier League sides have approached Ramadani for information.

Should Everton sign Napoli’s Maksimovic?

Ancelotti certainly seems keen to reinforce the Goodison Park backline in the upcoming market, with Maksimovic just one centre-back to have been linked with a move amid question marks over the ability of Everton’s current options to play together.

Prior reports by Il Mattino also suggested Ancelotti had explored a reunion with Maksimovic in January, but Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis demanded close to €10m (£8.5m) to sell the summer free agent.

Everton now have the chance to sign the 25-cap enforcer without owner Farhad Moshiri having to pay his current Serie A side a penny, but would seemingly have to assure Maksimovic of a starting role to beat out Roma, Inter Milan and West Ham’s interest.

Whether Ancelotti is willing to guarantee his former defender that chance remains to be seen, having favoured the 6 ft 3 Maksimovic more as a rotation option during his time in charge at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium.

Maksimovic made a combined 38 appearances across all competitions under the Italian during two seasons together in Naples, but his longest run in the starting line-up for Serie A fixtures lasted just five games.

Ancelotti sang his praises nonetheless, noting in 2018 via quotes by Tutto Napoli: “He has no problems. I am satisfied, he is an excellent defender, complete elastic, fast, he can play both centre-right and centre-left.”

Any interest Ancelotti had in a reunion at Everton will have been dealt a blow by Roma’s plans for further negotiations, it is now up to the Italian to decide if he is willing to give Maksimovic a starring role at Goodison Park next season.

AND in other news, Everton are tracking a £17m striker with “a wealth of talent”…

Former Leeds United striker Noel Whelan has lauded an “outrageous” moment from Raphinha in his side’s 2-0 defeat to West Ham, saying it sums him up as a player.

Marcelo Bielsa’s side were beaten at the London Stadium on Monday evening, leaving them in 11th place in the table with 11 matches remaining.

It has been a strong first season back in the top flight for Leeds, but four defeats in their last five league outings suggests they may just be running out of steam a little.

Whelan hails Raphinha

Raphinha has arguably been Leeds’ standout player so far this season, chipping in with five goals and assists apiece, wreaking havoc from out wide with his pace and trickery.

Speaking to Football Insider, Whelan lauded the 24-year-old, highlighting one acrobatic attempt against the Hammers as proof of his unique brilliance as a player, as well as praising his mentality:

“Raphinha was very quiet in the first 20 or 30 minutes of the game. Second half, when you need to show a bit of fight, we know he’s got that. It’s one of the thing things that I love so much about him. He gets upset by defeats. You can see that they hurt him.

“He was trying everything. The overhead kick that took a deflection, I don’t think any other player would have tried that in the Leeds United side.

“It goes to show the confidence and the belief in his own abilities that he has to try something as outrageous as that. It nearly came off.

“He’s one of these players that rise to the occasion and stands up to the fight. When you’re 2-0 down, his head doesn’t go down to the ground, his body language isn’t bad.

“He’s one of these players that wants to really fight and get something out of the game. We need these players at Leeds.

“But he gets that opportunity and he knows himself that he should have scored. Anywhere to the right or the left, it’s a goal. We’ve seen him bend them in two or three times this season.”

Transfer Tavern take

There is no doubt that Bielsa will be desperate to keep hold of Raphinha beyond this season, with the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United rumoured to be interested in signing him.

The Brazilian brings so much quality to this Leeds side and losing him would undoubtedly hamper their chances of building on this promising season and kicking on further in 2021/22 and beyond.

In other news: Phil Hay highlights major defensive issue at Leeds.

According to a report by Football Insider, Birmingham City have raised their asking price for wanted rising starlet Rico Browne to over £1 million – prompting Tottenham to stall on a deal after offering the defender an 18-month verbal contract.

Browne, who was on trial in north London before undertaking another one at West Ham, as per Football Insider, has now returned to Birmingham City with his future up in the air and shrouded in major doubt.

Tottenham stall on Browne

Both Tottenham and West Ham have been battling Brighton for his signature, but the London duo have stalled their interest as City ask for over £1 million including add-ons.

This follows on from an offer tabled by Tottenham in the form of a verbal contract, but the Lilywhites failed to put it in writing which allowed him to also trial at the Hammers.

Transfer Tavern take

Now, as Birmingham raise their price, the move has become complicated and Browne may not complete a move to Tottenham, West Ham or Brighton as a result.

Highly rated through the media, Tottenham face missing out on the 17-year-old centre-back after offering him an 18-month contract with the club.

Time will tell what comes of this transfer development, but for now, Spurs have stalled their interest.

In other news: Tottenham want this Vinicius alternative, find out more here.

Liverpool earned successive 3-1 away wins in the capital as they triumphed against West Ham at the London Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

A brace from Mohamed Salah and a goal from Georginio Wijnaldum were enough to seal the win before Craig Dawson’s late consolation earned a touch of credibility for David Moyes’ side.

Whilst Salah will rightly get a lot of credit for his two world-class goals in the second half, it was perhaps Jordan Henderson’s performance that will delight Klopp the most, as he produced another solid display in an unfamiliar position.

As per SofaScore, the Liverpool captain would earn a strong 7.0 rating for his display, with only Wijnaldum, Xherdan Shaqiri, Thiago and Salah rated higher.

The 31-year-old was featuring as a centre-back once again on Sunday, following the injuries to Joel Matip and Fabinho earlier in the week, but he showed that he can be relied upon when needed.

During the game, Henderson would contest four duels with West Ham players. He would win all of them.

This is even more impressive when you consider the physical nature of Moyes’ side, which boasts the likes of Tomas Soucek, Dawson and Michail Antonio, to name just a few.

The 30-year-old would enjoy 95 touches of the ball against West Ham, which was 55 more than Hammers centre-back Angelo Ogbonna, whilst 80/89 of his passes would find a Liverpool shirt, resulting in a solid 90% pass accuracy – more than his season average of 87.2%.

Despite playing at the back, Henderson was still able to showcase his passing ability, as he contributed one key pass, which was more than both of West Ham’s central midfielders and more than his average of 0.6 in the Premier League so far this season.

Last year, Klopp was full of praise for his captain, saying:

“He is exceptional; he is outstanding.”

Therefore, whilst Salah was the hero for Liverpool with his brace, Henderson’s near-perfect display against an in-form West Ham side means that he should earn a lot of plaudits too.

And, in other news… LFC dealt big transfer blow as reported bid for “natural leader” CB rejected

Steve Bruce should brutally axe Jamaal Lascelles from his starting line-up and replace the Newcastle United captain with Federico Fernandez in Saturday’s clash with Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Nuno Espirito Santo’s Wolves travel to St. James’ Park this weekend looking to continue their resurgence, with three wins in their last four games after going winless in the Premier League for almost two months.

United have endured back-to-back defeats in recent weeks after trips to Chelsea and Manchester United, to extend their torrid run of results to two wins in 14 top-flight fixtures.

Lascelles started both the Stamford Bridge and Old Trafford affairs after recovering from a hamstring injury, sustained just weeks after returning from a spell out with coronavirus.

But the 27-year-old could only let Bruce down in south west London with an uninspiring display as Thomas Tuchel’s side fired home twice to seal all three points, and again failed to walk the walk against Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Red Devils after talking the talk pre-game.

“I just think we did not start well enough,” Lascelles said, via quotes by Chronicle Live, following the Chelsea defeat. “From our goal-kick, we kicked it out for a throw-in and that set the tone.

“We need to realise we shouldn’t need to go one or two down to get going. We were off them a bit and made it easy. Against a team like Chelsea, you have to be nasty and if you don’t do that, their quality will come through.

“The performances have been better but tonight was not good enough, especially the first half, we did not give up in the second half and them positive signs are always good to have.”

Lascelles’ comments did not inspire much at Manchester United and Newcastle lost again for an eighth defeat in his last nine appearances across all competitions.

The £13m-rated titan earned his worst WhoScored match rating of the Premier League campaign at Old Trafford, too, with an appalling 5.73 – the third time this term that he has scored below a base 6.0 out of 10, and far below his average 6.48 for the season.

Over his last nine outings, the Magpies have also conceded two or more goals on every occasion but January’s 2-0 win at Everton, when Lascelles was forced off early in the second half with his hamstring injury.

Bruce must surely now face a dilemma over retaining Lascelles in his starting line-up for Saturday’s clash with Wolves, which could prove a must-win fixture – not only for his position at the helm but the Toon’s survival hopes.

United are set to welcome Fernandez back from injury for the Molineux natives’ trip to the north east, as well, after being without the Argentine for their last eight top-flight games.

Bruce has previously lauded Fernandez for the “positive influence” the defender can bring on and off the pitch at St. James’ Park, and should look to capitalise on that if Newcastle are to avoid potentially ending the weekend inside the Premier League’s bottom three.

Fernandez also offers almost twice as many successful (1.5) and attempted (1.8) tackles per game than £40,000-per-week Lascelles (0.8/0.9), who ranks last among all five players that Bruce has fielded at centre-half in the top-flight this term, per WhoScored.

Lascelles is also last for interceptions (0.6), though level with 32-year-old Fernandez who is first for clearances (5.6) while his English teammate ranks fourth (4.2).

It may be brutal to axe the captain, but Bruce must make the tough decisions if he’s to keep Newcastle out of the relegation zone.

AND in other news, Newcastle are exploring a deal to sign a £31.5m-rated star for free this summer…

When the January transfer window comes around, Victor Orta must yelp in horror at what could be to come.

In the last two years, his work with Leeds has been nothing short of a nightmare, but that’s not entirely been his fault.

In 2019, a deal had been agreed to sign Daniel James from Swansea. The winger penned his contract and was pictured holding a Leeds shirt at Elland Road. However, in the dying embers on deadline day the Swans didn’t pick up the phone and a move fell through.

Then, just a year later, a move for Jean-Kevin Augustin turned into a complete failure.

The Frenchman had enormous potential but he is failing to discover it, and his spell at Leeds summed things up. He played just 48 minutes for the first-team with a major flaw proving to be his fitness.

He didn’t work himself into Marcelo Bielsa’s plans and then a fierce legal battle followed. The Yorkshire side had an obligation to buy but failed to cough up the money required to RB Leipzig because of how the loan spell had gone.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t look as though Leeds have learnt their lesson. That’s because they’re supposedly chasing Fiorentina striker Christian Kouame this month.

The forward, who earns £16k-per-week in Italy, has been nothing short of a flop in Serie A and has scored just once for La Viola. His season has been disastrous and bears huge similarities to the one that Augustin was having before he came to Elland Road.

He spent the first half of last season at Monaco but like Kouame, scored a solitary goal. Therefore, one has to question why Leeds are pursuing someone with such a shoddy record once again.

Of course, adding squad depth is important but Patrick Bamford has been the undisputed number 9 for the last two and a half years now. Even when he’s not playing well Bielsa still picks him.

Though, the fact of the matter, is that the attacker is in the form of his life. Bamford already has ten goals in 17 outings this season so it’s not as though he’s going to be dislodged in a hurry.

Consequently, signing Kouame would be nothing more than a waste of money. Like Augustin, he wouldn’t play and thus, would find it difficult to score goals.

AND in other news, Leeds must swoop for £13m brute with “long levers”, Orta has found the new Phillips…

Sheffield Wednesday defender Matthew Penney dropped a massive clanger in what was a rare start for the Owls on Wednesday night.

The south Yorkshire outfit were defeated on their return to Championship action, also ending an unbeaten run of four league games.

Interim boss Neil Thompson faces a tough task as his side remain some six points from safety and in losing to Coventry City, gave a potential relegation rival some extra leg room at the bottom of the table.

On paper, it was probably one of the strongest line-ups the Owls caretaker could select with Keiren Westwood returning between the sticks, veteran midfielder Sam Hutchinson making his second debut with usual culprits Barry Bannan, Tom Lees and Adam Reach all starting too.

Plenty of stick was given to the Owls’ former captain on social media, one member of the Hillsborough faithful went as far as wanting him gone from the club.

However, he was probably one of the only shining lights of the match, recording a squad-high 7.1 rating per SofaScore.

YorkshireLive’s Dom Howson was particularly glowing about Lees in his post-match ratings, he said:

“Defensively solid. Strong in the air and made a number of important clearances. A no-nonsense performance.”

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There were plenty of others far more culpable than the 30-year-old.

Indeed, Penney was one of those as he started only his third game of the campaign and first in a flat back-four. And in his poor display, he betrayed the faith given to him by his 57-year-old temporary boss.

The 22-year-old academy product was hugely wasteful, making only 59% of his 27 passes – the worst of any outfield starter from the visiting team, via SofaScore.

He was also careless with the ball, losing possession a whopping 22 times, which was second to central midfielder Barry Bannan but as the set-piece taker, his numbers are hugely unfavourable.

On top of that, Penney – who was shipped out on loan last season – also won only six of 14 duels (42.8%) both on the ground and in the air, and as a result, the opposition capitalised.

The left-back even recorded three fouls and picked up a booking before the 50th minute, just to cap off his nightmare display at St Andrew’s Stadium.

Penney was far worse than Lees and plenty of his other Owls teammates on the night, so Thompson may want to think twice before selecting him again anytime soon.

AND in other news, Exclusive: Palmer drops Sheffield Wednesday manager claim

Spurs are reportedly one of the Premier League outfits keeping tabs on Red Bull Salzburg star Dominik Szoboszlai. That’s according to 90min, who claim that Daniel Levy and co are amongst the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool who are all monitoring the midfielder’s current situation.

The 20-year-old has attracted attention from all over Europe, with Barcelona, Real Madrid and Dortmund just three others to be very keen on his services. The interest is more than justified too. This season alone, Szoboszlai has contributed to 14 Salzburg goals in 15 appearances, breaking down to five goals and nine assists so far.

His red-hot form adds to his impressive tally at the Austrian club, where he boasts 22 goals and 33 assists so far in 76 senior appearances (via Transfermarkt). These are certainly numbers that Jose Mourinho will be blown away by and they are similar to that of Tottenham icon Son Heung-min.

Szoboszlai could be perfect Son protege

Whilst Harry Kane has been the poster boy of the north London outfit for years now, teammate Son is slowly encroaching on his spotlight. The South Korean is in unstoppable form this season and it’s not a fluke either. Mourinho’s treasured winger has been consistently scoring and assisting goals for almost five seasons now, but where the team relies so heavily on him, they struggle immensely when he is unavailable.

Son’s injury last season really hurt Spurs and their form in the Premier League. Having a younger attacker with a similar playing style to the 28-year-old will hugely benefit the team. Not only would signing Szoboszlai add much-needed depth to Tottenham’s attack but working closely with one of the best wingers in the world would hugely improve his own game.

The Lilywhites have Steven Bergwijn and Ryan Sessegnon on the books as back-up left-wingers. The latter is currently out on loan with Hoffenheim in order to gain some valuable first team minutes, but he has been showing a lot more promise playing in his old position of left-back. Mourinho will undoubtedly be aware of this and could be considering reverting him back to a defender once he returns.

Bergwijn on the other hand is finding first team action hard to come by and has been reduced to mainly cameo appearances this season. If Levy splashes out on bringing Szoboszlai to the Tottenham Hotspur stadium, it could spell trouble for Bergwijn, who is three years older than the Hungarian talent.

Similarly, Sessegnon is also younger than the former PSV man and both naturally have the upper hand on being selected under Mourinho.

In other news, Spurs could sign ideal Eriksen replacement in Jack Grealish…

For Leeds United, their win over Burnley was an important one.

Only a matter of days ago they were dispatched by Manchester United, being defeated 6-2 at Old Trafford.

Therefore, to 1-0 win and a clean sheet when they welcomed the Clarets to Elland Road will have been a huge source of comfort. The Whites withstood a barrage of high balls and corners into their area, something they traditionally haven’t defended well in recent years.

However, goalkeeper Illan Meslier came up big in the dying embers to make a succession of saves.

That being said, his afternoon could have been far more comfortable if Leeds took their opportunities. On the odd occasion in the Championship Marcelo Bielsa’s team were guilty of failing to put their chances away and that was a similar story on Sunday afternoon.

That was primarily because of Jack Harrison and Mateusz Klich, two players who had an afternoon to forget in the final third. The Manchester City loanee was keen to bomb forward but in key moments failed to provide the goods.

The winger did provide a superb cross which Rodrigo fired over but that was one of very few positives from his performance. Harrison missed a tremendous chance to score in the first half and spent the second period as an anonymous figure.

The 24-year-old succeeded with just one of five crosses which rather sums up the lack of end product he often possesses. Furthermore, he managed just ten passes in the entire game – two fewer than Meslier between the sticks.

That’s alarming, but so is the fact he managed no shots on target and lost possession a mighty 15 times.

It’s natural for a winger to lose possession more often than other individuals on the pitch, but even when he kept the ball, he failed to produce much.

On his day, Harrison is a tricky forward but all too regularly he lacks end product. This was one of those days and it should have left Bielsa rather displeased. His performance was even worse than Klich’s, someone withdrawn at half-time at Old Trafford and again just after the hour mark on Sunday.

If Harrison had scored his chance in the opening period, it would have been a much easier affair for the entire team. He desperately needs to work on his finishing.

AND in other news, Bielsa must be ruthless with LUFC disaster who’s “having a weird time”…

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Harry Winks is back in the England squad but he has struggled under Jose Mourinho so far this season, putting his place in danger long-term.

It’s no secret that Maurico Pochettino was a huge admirer of the 24-year-old after he handed him his Premier League debut back in 2016, coming on as Christian Eriksen’s replacement in a 1-1 draw with Liverpool.

But the academy graduate’s position would soon be found as a no.6 or no.8 rather than as a creative influence behind the striker. The former Spurs boss told the Evening Standard that Winks “has the profile of the perfect midfield player,” and added:

“His characteristics are perfect. When we talk about midfielders like Xavi and Iniesta, he’s like this type of player. He has the possibility and the potential, of course, but now it is up to him.”

Mourinho, however, has favoured the likes of Tanguy Ndombele, who was a forgotten man at times last season, and Moussa Sissoko, who is now the wrong side of 30.

Winks started all six of Spurs’ final top-flight matches last term but has been restricted to just four appearances this season, missing the matchday squad entirely in two of their last three outings, which is only further damning on where his future may lie under the Special One.

The €40m-rated (£36m) midfielder is now at a career crossroad – stay and fight for his place? or even potentially leave? It’s a European Championship year after all and given that he’s rarely impressed this term, his place on the plane is by no means certain.

Earlier in the summer, he was even linked with a shock £40m move to Premier League rivals Manchester City, as per The Sun

Winks possesses the lowest average rating of any Spurs player that has featured in four or more matches, managing just 6.22.

The number of key passes per game on average has halved, from 0.6 to 0.3, whilst the deep-lying playmaker has also regressed in terms of tackles per match too, with the figure decreasing from 1.3 to just one, when comparing last campaign to 2020/21, via WhoScored.

It seems like Winks is very much on the outside looking in under Mourinho and that means he’s at risk of becoming another Tom Carroll or Sandro, who neither hit the heights that they should’ve in N17.

In fact, the Brazilian’s game time diminished season by season at Spurs, very much in a similar nature to Winks right now. They too have played similar roles but will often be remembered for their sideways and backwards passing, more so than any sort of lasting legacy.

That is something that Pochettino could never have imagined.

AND in other news, Spurs must regret losing “explosive” speed demon who is the next Jadon Sancho…